G Block Women Group 2

Women in Victorian Age:

- Education: no need of university education (no high educational expectation from society, the women’s carrier was their marriage)

- Legal married women: (rights were similar to those of children)

o No voting

o No suing

o Not able to own property

o Have children and educate them until they are fully grown

o Take care of the household chores

- Limited women’s rights

o At special cases: be a teacher as a tutor at home

o Were allowed to choose menu and ensuring her children’s moral values

o Innocent, biddable, virtuous, dutiful and be ignorant of intellectual opinion

- Women = pure & clean

o Bodies were supposed to be pure so they shouldn’t adorn it with makeup

- Unclean

o Unfaithful wives would be kicked out of the house

o Man sleeping with any women was okay BUT for women wasn’t okay in any case

- Women were not allowed to have banking/ checking accounts or saving account (not allowed to own property)

-If the women were in a higher social class:

• Able to rest
• Have tea
• Sewing

- If the women were in a lower class:

• Had to go to other houses to work
• Take food left over from ht house that they worked at

- Women were expected to:

o Be weak and fragile

o Depend on their husbands

o Incapable of making decisions

- Women’s prime use was to bear a large family and maintain a smooth family atmosphere so the man wasn’t concerned about domestic matters

- Dresses: show typical excessive style element

o V waist

o Layering of trims

o Bell sleeves

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Bibliography:

• Fashion-Era.com, Pauline Weston Thomas for. "A Woman's Place in Victorian Society - Social and Fashion history." Fashion History Costume Trends and Eras, Trends Victorians - Haute Couture. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2010.
• "Women's Life." Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2010.
• "Nineteenth Century Curriculum." Redirect - NMSU Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Feb. 2010.